Back to 1984: I built a chicken farm on a barren mountain.

When Chen Youwei used a loudspeaker to spread the word about buying dried radishes, dried green beans, and dried pumpkins, Chenjiazhuang began its autumn harvest that year.

The autumn harvest in 1984 came a little later than in 1983. That year there was plenty of rain, so the crops grew longer and matured later.

If there had been more rain, the harvest might have been reduced, but this year's rain stopped irrigating the land just in time for autumn, which is a stroke of luck for the farmers.

That's how agricultural production is; it depends on the weather.

The main crop harvested in Chenjiazhuang in autumn is corn, followed by sorghum, millet, sweet potatoes, potatoes, peanuts, and a small amount of beans, such as soybeans, mung beans, and red beans.

A few families also grow sesame, but it's not a staple food, so it's not widely cultivated.

Although Old Sun was watching over Jiming Mountain, one person's strength was ultimately limited. So Chen Wenfeng arranged a shift, staggering everyone's time to go home and harvest corn, ensuring that one person would come up the mountain every day to help Old Sun.

Once these matters were settled, everyone went home to their own mothers and began harvesting their own corn.

Chen Wenfeng's family planted more than six mu of corn, and in the next few days, the whole family had to work together to harvest the corn.

However, the autumn harvest is not as urgent as the wheat harvest. It doesn't matter much if the corn is in the field a day earlier or later. So, although it is tiring, the mindset is much more relaxed.

Chen Shouyi drove the oxcart to the edge of the field, and Chen Wenfeng and Wang Guizhi threw down the bags and baskets from the cart. The three of them then stood side by side, each holding three or four rows, and began to break them apart.

Wenshui is a little slower, but she can keep up.

Xiaofang is still young, so she can only work in this line of work.

Harvesting corn usually involves breaking the corn stalks off the corn and tearing them down, then piling them up nearby. Once an entire field has been harvested, the corn is loaded into baskets or bags and transported to an oxcart.

Chen Wenfeng, having worked in Jiming Mountain for a long time, was faster than Chen Shouyi and Wang Guizhi due to his youth and good physical strength.

Chen Shouyi and Wang Guizhi kept pulling forward side by side, while Wenshui followed closely behind her parents.

Although his hands were very sore, and he sometimes had to use more effort to break the pieces that were difficult to break, he gritted his teeth and refused to fall behind.

Xiaofang was distracted by various things after talking for a while, sometimes kicking the crickets with her feet, sometimes throwing clods of dirt at the sparrows that flew by.

The family worked diligently, and before they knew it, they had been harvesting corn from morning till noon. They had almost finished harvesting the two acres of corn in the field.

Chen Wenfeng also felt tired, so he went back to the field and drank water twice.

He then began loading corn into the oxcart. Once the cart was full, Chen Shouyi drove it home.

Taking advantage of the break, Chen Wenfeng and Wang Guizhi picked up sickles, cut the already broken corn stalks, and piled them on the ground.

Wen Shui took the opportunity to rest for a while. He was really exhausted. For him, doing farm work was not as strenuous as reading.

Chen Wenfeng has always hoped that his younger brother could study hard and get into a good university. Now that the family's financial situation has gradually improved, supporting his younger brother and sister's schooling is no longer a problem.

Let alone his younger siblings going to school, if Chen Wenfeng's rebirth had taken place a little earlier, he would have wanted to go to university.

But while it's a good idea, it's a real challenge to send all three children to school.

My younger brother Wenshui is doing well in his studies. As for my younger sister Xiaofang, let her study for now. It's better than her dropping out of school early to get married.

If you can't get into a four-year university, a vocational college isn't a bad option. Chen Wenfeng remembered that in his previous life, with more and more college students graduating each year, the value of academic qualifications was severely depreciating. He calculated that his younger siblings should still be able to benefit from the advantages of higher education.

After Chen Shouyi unloaded a truckload of corn at home, he returned with some cornbread. The family had a simple lunch in the fields.

This plot of land is close to home; if it were a more distant plot, people would usually take a whole day to get there, bringing only dry rations.

As Chen Wenfeng bit into the dry, hard cornbread, he suddenly found it very sweet and fragrant.

In the cornfield, large stalks had already been cut down. Beyond the piles of stalks and corn on the ground, the distant green mountains were like dark eyebrows, and a gentle breeze blew, washing away the fatigue of the morning.

Chen Shouyi, Wang Guizhi, and Chen Wenshui also ate quite a bit; it seems everyone was really tired and hungry.

Xiaofang only ate a few bites before putting the rest down. She was a late bloomer, and one of her baby teeth was particularly stubborn; it had only recently fallen out. The dry, hard cornbread was indeed a bit difficult for her to chew. Seeing Xiaofang's low spirits, Chen Wenfeng comforted her:

"Xiaofang, after the autumn harvest is over, your big brother will make you some chicken soup!"

"OK!"

Indeed, the only thing in this world that should not be missed is good food, especially for a young girl who loves food so much.

After finishing the pancakes, the family each drank some water and then got back to work.

Wang Guizhi couldn't help but sigh:

"Now that my two sons are older, they can pick corn much faster. I remember it used to take them a long time!"

Chen Shouyi shared the same sentiment, saying:

"Wenfeng is working faster than both of us now. That kid is becoming more and more promising. A few years ago, when he was hanging out with Lao San, I was worried he would go astray!"

"You know the third brother doesn't go astray, right? When he was hanging out with you, you never bothered to discipline him!"

"......"

Chen Shouyi was rebuked by his wife, but he didn't say anything. After all, it was his wife who was criticizing him, so he figured he might as well let her do it. He was indeed an optimist.

The family worked until the sun was setting. Chen Shouyi drove the oxcart home several times, finally filling the last cart.

At this point, the whole family was so tired they could barely stand up straight.

Chen Wenfeng said with a hint of regret:

"I should have brought two chickens with me when I came down the mountain. Making some chicken soup would have helped me relax."

Wang Guizhi listened to her son's complaints and comforted him:

"Let's wait until we're done with these last couple of days. Even if we had chicken now, we wouldn't feel like cooking it."

Chen Shouyi got into the carriage, raised the whip, and said:

"Get on the bus, everyone. We'll talk more when we get home!"

Wang Guizhi, Chen Wenfeng, and Chen Wenshui all got on the oxcart, but Chen Xiaofang was nowhere to be seen.

"Xiaofang!"

"Xiaofang!"

"Chen Xiaofang..."

It turned out that Chen Xiaofang had nothing to do, so she came to a neighboring cornfield. The cornfield had not been harvested yet, and the setting sun shone through, making it warm.

Xiaofang saw a black, round thing moving in the cornfield. She was very curious, so she lowered her head and tiptoed in.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a nest of hedgehogs!

Two big hedgehogs and several little hedgehogs. Just as she was about to reach out and grab them, she heard her parents and brothers calling her.

Afraid the hedgehog would run away, she didn't dare answer and quietly retreated from the cornfield.

After she had gone quite a distance, she turned around and ran towards the oxcart, calling out as she ran:

"Hedgehog, there's a hedgehog over there!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Wenfeng jumped off the oxcart and asked:

"Where is it?"